End of Federal Grants Could Damage Russian Studies, Scholars Say

By Thomas Bartlett

Compared with federal budget cuts in the tens of billions of
dollars, the recent elimination of a program that supports Russian
studies barely registers. The program, which was run by the U.S.
Department of State, provided a relatively tiny $3.3-million to
organizations that finance research on Russia and other former
Soviet-bloc countries. It also supports language study.

Some scholars in the field, however, say the consequences of the
cut could be enormous.